Fighting Weight One Calorie At a Time

My comprehensive review of the FitBit Aria Wi-Fi Smart scale and why you NEED to own it.

Its about time I review this scale, especially because I’ve owned it for over a year now. When I bought the scale I was seriously into dieting & exercise and weight loss. I was trying to find the best and easiest solution for tracking my weight loss and gain over the weeks, months and even years. After doing some research I cam across the Aria Digital Scale. At first I was taken back at the price because most scales are under $20 bucks. However, this is a SMART scale! I ordered the scale on Amazon and never looked back.

Aria Scale Features

Simple Setup & Configuration

Automatic Wireless Uploads to FitBit.com and Mobile Devices

Multiple Users (up to 8) and Guest Recognition

High Maximum weight capacity of 350 pounds

Integrates With Popular Weight Loss & Exercise Apps

Estimates Body Fat Percentage

Comes in White or Black to match your Bathroom

Emails you when the Batteries are Low

Some added Motivational Bonuses!

Simple Aria Scale Set Up

The scale is pretty easy to set up even though it requires a little more than just popping in batteries. You can find simple instructions from FitBit here or by reading the info that comes with the scale. Basically you’ll need to install some software on your computer and set up an account with Fitbit. So…. if you don’t have a computer this probably isn’t the scale for you. Also if your worried about getting annoying emails and marketing from Fitbit.com or anywhere else I can tell you I haven’t gotten any of these in the entire year I’ve had mine. Once the software is installed you will have to name your scale, put in some info about yourself and connect it to the network all from your computer.

Adding Other Users to the Aria Scale

You might plan on sharing your scale and want to add other users. The Aria Scale can track up to 8 separate users that it will recognize as soon as they step on the scale. The scale will work fine if the user doesn’t want to open a Fitbit account and use the scale to track their own results. To add another user you will have to go into your Fitbit dashboard and send an email invitation to the other user giving them instructions on how to set themselves up.

FitBit Website Dashboard

Here is a screen shot of what my Fitbit Dashboard looks like. Keep in mind that I also own the Fitbit Flex Wristband and Sync with MyFitnessPal.com so I have so additional logging options like calories, steps and sleep. This is just a general overview of the dashboard.

Lets take a look at the weight tracking which is what the Aria Scale is really for! What makes my review better than others is the fact that my weight fluctuates so much, or maybe I should say I diet hard and eat like shit. You’ll notice my achievement of gaining 25lbs since I got the scale.

I set this to show everything since I’ve owned the scale. You’ll notice my ups and downs and how far I am (and have gotten) from my goals. I also pointed out the weight summary at the top right.

Using The Aria Scale App for Android

I showed you how the Aria Scale looks on the internet but that’s not how I personally use it. I prefer to use the FitBit App on my phone. The only disadvantage to the mobile app is that you cant track as far back as on the computer. All of the Fitbit logs are more detailed on the computer. Here is how the mobile app looks;

Aria Scale Tracking Over 1 Year

1 Years of Body Fat Tracking

1 Year of BMI Tracking

I love how it reminds me I’m obese! You’ll notice all the little bubbles. Those are all the times I stepped on the scale and it logged my weight. For me I check my weight much more frequently when I’m trying to lose it. Once I start gaining I don’t want to know what the scale says and I’m scared to even go near it. Below you’ll see a more condensed view of 3 months time.

The shot below gives you and idea of what it looks like if you touch one of the bubbles. I couldn’t help but touch my lowest one to show off how much I lost when I had control. Sunday, March 23rd 2014, Oh, How I miss that day!!!!

Aria SMART Scale Bonuses!

I’m not sure if I should share this because I was pretty surprised when it happened. When I was busting my ass trying to lose weight the scale knew it! Whats this mean? This scale is so smart that it would shoot me out an email congratulating me on my weight loss! The first one of these you get gives you an amazing feeling of accomplishment. The ore you lose the more the scale lets you know how proud it is. Even my wife was blown away when she saw in her email one day that Aria Smart Scale noticed she lost some weight and wanted to congratulate her. This is an awesome feature and great surprise, sorry if I ruined it for you.

Why I Love This Scale & How I use it

I haven’t put the scale to good use lately but it still reminds me of the good ole days when I weighed in at 245 lbs. Its not just so I can see the weight but its a nerdy tracking tool. I don’t just use the scale by itself. You may have noticed in my dashboard picture that I have the scale synced to my Fitbit Flex and also myfitnesspal. This means I can go back last year and review all the things I ate and how much exercise I did. When your working hard at dieting these tools all fit together really well. You can see some of the other things I use in my Weight Loss Weapons post.

Do I think the scale is accurate?

As far as weight I think the scale works great. I’ve used the scale before going to the doctor and the weight compared to there scales has always been just about the same.

For fat and BMI tracking I’m not so sure. From everything I read, getting an accurate BMI reading is extremely difficult without having it done by a professional. When I was working out and running like crazy I wanted to believe my BMI was way lower then the scale was telling me. No matter how much weight I lost my BMI didn’t change. The technique this scale uses to measure BMI is the same as one of those hand held BMI testers and they don’t work perfectly. I didn’t buy the Aria scale for this purpose and I never looked to deep into the BMI calculations.

I’ve had the scale for over a year and it still looks just like it did when I took it out of the box. You can see it in the picture below. Its in perfect shape and and any marks you can see on it are just a reflection of things in my bathroom.

Who Should Buy This Scale?

I highly recommend this scale to anyone serious about weight loss, dieting, exercise or looking to monitor their weight over time. Its not hard to use at all and easy to set up. If you already use a FitBit pedometer or MyFitnessPal this a must have! This might cost a little more but its an all around great scale. If you don’t want to use the computer or phone app then its probably way more than you need and you might want to settle on a basic scale. For everyone else this is a major improvement for advanced weight tracking!

Best Place To Buy The Aria Scale

I’m a big fan of online shopping and got mine from Amazon.com but you could probably find it at one of your local department stores like Best buy or someplace like that.

Well I’m trying to start cooking again. I made these really tasty Salmon Cakes on the BBQ last night and I wanted to share because I know how much everyone loves Salmon Recipes!

My BBQ Salmon Fish Cakes

This one is not very easy to make and the recipe is pretty involved so if enough people leave comments on this post I’ll be sure to include the full recipe to the site. This was fun to make, low fat and tasty as hell! For now I’ll leave it in the What I Eat section.

Fish Cake Topping

I topped this off with a mix of sriracha, mayo and lemon juice. It was spicy enough to really get me sweating and probably not the best idea for a fat person on an 85 degree night!

Cut another piece of foil large enough to cover everything and fold up the sides

Place on a cookie sheet and bake for 30 minutes

3.2.1303

This recipe was a change up for me because I happened to have the ingredients around and really wanted to try making a Greek yogurt pesto sauce. It definitely didn’t hit my taste buds like the Garlic Parmesan Salmon Foil Pack but it wasn’t bad.

Regular pesto sauce is made mainly with basil and olive oil making it SUPER high calorie. Substituting the Greek yogurt is a healthy and low calorie alternative. Your probably thinking, YUCK!! Yogurt, salmon, garlic, etc…… It really wasn’t bad and most of the yogurt cooked out leaving a chunky mixture. I tasted the mixture before it was cooked and it was actually pretty tasty and would make a great dip, just a bit on the garlicky side.

I use all fresh ingredients when I can including the asparagus and definitely the Basil for this.

You can easily throw this on the BBQ but make sure the covers closed so you don’t put on to much direct heat.

I probably wouldn’t make this again because the flavor was pretty light. I only used about 1/4 of the mixture and changed the recipe to include half. Make sure to scrape off whatever mixture is left in your foil pack and top it on your fish. This also could of been because the fresh basil I had already passed its time and might not of been so flavorful.

Here are some more photos from this recipe

Greek Yogurt in the food Processor

Yogurt Pesto Mixture

Well Placed Salmon & Asparagus

Salmon & Asparagus with Pesto

Foil Pack!!

Unwrapped Pesto Salmon Foil Pack

The finished meal!

I ate this with a side of fresh romaine salad topped with Japanese Ginger Dressing. It was a very light meal but extremely filling!

Happy Thursday Everyone!

Well I figured I’d post a quick update because I always weigh the least on Thursdays. Today I got on the scale and almost all of my Florida Vacation weight dropped off. I was 244.5 lbs this morning. That’s really great but we have an upcoming weekend filled with things like Easter and family gatherings.

What I’m doing

Well I’m still doing this carb cycle thing where I completely limit my carbs and eat low calorie Monday – Wednesday. I’m very impressed how well this is working out for me. I do end up feeling kind of crappy with low energy by the time Wednesday night roles around.

I cant keep this up all week because life comes into play. The easiest days for me to structure my meals are these days because its the beginning of the work week and we rarely have plans. We can do all our food shopping and planning on Sunday. Its so much easier when everything’s already in the house and you know what your going to eat. Im really not suffering and happy with my food choices.

Ever wonder why Thursdays are sabotage? I haven’t mentioned this but we do a weekly dinner at my Grandmothers. She cooks really rich food and it always kills me!

Ideas of what I’m eating

Snacks:

If you looked at my MFP diary you’d see that I eat tons of quick snacks and pretty small or limited meals.

I bought a ton of beef jerky

Lots of Nuts

Polly-O Stings Cheese

Fresh Mozzarella Cheese

Breakfast:

Most of the time I skip breakfast otherwise-

Scrambled Eggs

Coffee

Lunch:

I can get pretty creative with my lunches. Having easy to heat up frozen stuff in the house keeps me on track.

Turkey Meatballs

Turkey Burgers

Salad

Salad with Tuna

Omelet with cheese

Dinner:

Dinner I get a little creative and I try to eat mostly protein and get in my vegetables. I try to really mix it up because its my main meal for the day. Here’s some ideas.

Chicken Breast

Chicken Thighs

Fish

Pork Chops

Steak

Sides

Spaghetti Squash

Acorn Squash

Salad

Tomatoes with Fresh Mozzarella

This is at least the stuff I’ve been eating recently. I know some of these arent the healthiest options but I’ve been so busy lately. If I really need fast food I have the options of Chinese Takeout, Greek Salads or the quickest Boston Market. Usually I get whatever I want at Boston Market but the sides are important. Eat the creamed spinach and green beans and do your best to skip the corn bread!

I’m still keeping my calories below 1650 or around. This is pretty simple!

Check out last nights dinner!

These weeks are going by faster and faster and before I know it another Monday is here. The last weigh for week #11 was disappointing because I was finally making some progress before I went on vacation. I’ll announce my weight and than I can discuss whats going on.

Start of Week #12 Official Weight – 251.5

This week was a total of one pound dropped since last week. I’m glad it didn’t go up but surely I could have done better. This goes to show a week of eating like shit on vacation can have some lasting effects. All that hard work pre-vacation is down the drain until I lose these pounds again.

I did weigh myself through out the week and dropped into the 240’s again but no where close to what I weighed when I left. I haven’t been totally committed to eating good and having a hard time getting back to the routine I was in. My life has been very hectic with my business being really busy and our house in total dismay trying to get ready for this baby. These are some problems and then you add three our four family/friend parties in a week and its sabotage!

Moving Forward

I feel like I’ve been saying the same thing for my last 5 weigh-ins but I’m really trying to get back into a routine. We haven’t even done any grocery shopping since we got back from Florida last week so any food choices in the house are found deep in the freezer or we’ve done some take-out. I’m going to attempt to drop the carbs again Monday-Wednesday and watch what I eat the other days. That seemed to be working really good for me. I’m still using MFP as much as I can but when you go out to eat or pick on random stuff around the house its really hard to accurately log everything.

I passed my 10 week weigh-in because I was in Florida on vacation. Such a vacation that I totally forgot that I was trying to eat better and indulged in just about anything I could find. I was really nervous to get on the scale this morning and I really wish I didn’t!

Start of Week #11 Official Weight – 252.6

Now that’s a real buzz killer compared to my awesome week# 9 weigh-in! Its only my fault for eating the way I did but this isn’t such a diet as it i a lifestyle change. I tried to log my calories but when your eating out for every meal its really not possible nor does it make sense. Whats the point of logging a guess at the Golden Corral Buffet?

This isn’t so much a diet for m as it is a lifestyle change. I ate like shit for a week and now I’m back. I’m going to watch what I’m eating and get back into my groove. Hopefully I can easily slide back into the 240 range by next week.

I will leave you off with a view from our hotel room. The weather here in NY was terrible so it was nice to know we picked a perfect time to hang out in Orlando relaxing for a week. Amy and I had a great time and I don’t regret eating ice cream with her every single day! We even narrowed down our baby names!